Increasingly, product manufacturers rise or fall based on their online reviews. Consumers view them—often while in a brick-and-mortar store—to make immediate buying decisions. Writing reviews, good or bad, offers an outlet for venting and expressing opinions; in turn giving manufacturers invaluable information about brand perception and areas needing improvement.

With all these important functions, labels should provide an easy way for consumers to research, review, and offer opinions while in front of the physical product (versus online shopping). Wondering about that bottle of wine on the shelf? Just consumed that new salsa product and want to weigh in about it? Eager to extol the virtues of a new nutraceutical (or excoriate the product for not living up to the hype)?

Via QR code, website URL or other means of fast, easy access, make your label the conduit to seeing and leaving reviews while shopping in a brick-and-mortar store or at the point of consumption. This is decidedly different than the online shopping world, where the opportunity to see and leave reviews is often only a mouse click or two away—a la Amazon.

On the Label, Top of Mind

Yes, it’s relatively easy to check Google or other online review platforms while checking out a product at such places as Costco. And, anyone can go to a review site to offer an evaluation. But, offering a quick code scan or website URL via the label itself while in front of the product in the store or at home can eliminate a “barrier” to entry. Often, the folks taking the time to write a review are either very disgruntled or extremely happy. A big group in the middle may have intentions to go there, but it gets lost in the shuffle. Offering an “in the moment” way to express an opinion via label makes the process more robust. As for seeing reviews, using the label as a quick access point can eliminate the sometimes tedious process of searching various review platforms to piece together a picture. However, it’s important to many consumers that the site accessed through the label offers a truthful picture. (If I see 50 five-star and no negative reviews on Google or elsewhere, I generally start checking other sites or discount the reviews altogether—concerned that the results have been curated to show only happy customers.)

Not All Reviews Are Created Equal

To be sure, there is a growing list of reputation management and review service providers whose primary function is to help companies collect and post “happy” reviews. In theory, the idea is to get consumers to provide review feedback through a technology platform that sifts, sorts, and manages how the information ultimately gets presented. The idea, generally, is to make it convenient for consumers to leave reviews through this service that wind up on Google, Yelp, et al. instead of having to go directly to a particular review platform.

The top-line reviews get posted on the various platforms, while lower-satisfaction buyers are routed directly to the company (and not published), so that negative feedback doesn’t see the light of day. (Also, this provides an easy way for companies to reach out to disgruntled customers in an effort to remediate the problem.) While the opportunity to “right a wrong” is very useful, the resulting skewed review picture is often misleading. As consumers become ever-more-savvy about this practice, they are likely to get more suspicious about “too good to be true” review compilations.

So, use your label to give prospects and buyers an easy way to consume or offer product reviews without dummying up the results. To those companies that fear negative reviews seeing the light of day, remember that social media is the ultimate lie detector. The truth will likely come out somehow, somewhere. If your product(s) has problems, address them both in terms of improving overall quality and attempting to rebuild the relationship with the unhappy customer.

There’s actually a potential silver lining in some negative reviews. If I see a few less-than-stellar reviews mixed in, I’m more likely to trust the veracity of the overall evaluation. While some fear competitors “salting” them with negative reviews, I sometimes feel just the opposite. It’s not generally realistic for “everyone to be happy all the time,” so as the number of reviews mount, keep in mind the seemingly counterintuitive practice of seeking out some dissension for the sake of believability.

Bottom line, product labels can substantially enhance the efficacy of consumer decision-making and opinion-offering. If you offer a top-quality product, this should accrue to your benefit.

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. is president of Lusky Enterprises Inc., a marketing communications and content development company. Since 2008, he has worked with Lightning Labels, a Denver-based all-digital custom label printing company, as a content developer specializing in expert advice articles. Lusky presents common-sense ideas grounded in doing what’s real and right for managing and enhancing public image.